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Carnival Holiday

Bill Addison

Age: 57

Occupation:Firefighter/Paramedic

Number of Cruises: 6

Cruise Line: Carnival

Ship: Carnival Holiday

Sailing Date: December 11th, 2004

Itinerary: Western Caribbean

This was my 6th cruise, 4th on Carnival. We were booked to go to Alaska aboard
the Carnival Spirit in May, 2004, but had to cancel due to my wife having major
medical problems. The group this time was me and my wife, from Foley, AL, my
sister from Hamilton, OH and her daughter (same age as my wife) from Louisville,
KY. We had rooms M-92 and M-94.

We had sailed on the Carnival Celebration, the Destiny and the Golden Princess.
After sailing on 2 of the larger ships, we thought we would try a smaller ship
again. What a pleasure it was to "return home". We enjoyed the slower pace and
less crowded atmosphere of the Holiday. I had read several reviews before going
on this cruise. Some of them were critical of the Holiday for being an older
ship, about the dated decor, etc. Yes, she is a 20 year old ship, but clean and
in good shape, with the friendliest crew I have ever seen.

Paul, the Cruise Director was the best I have ever sailed with. The last dat at
sea we were in 8-12 foot seas all day, so all outside activities were cancelled.
Paul and his staff did a teriffic job of keeping things active inside. I would
give him and his staff a rating of 98. When we sailed on the Destiny in 200, I
rated that Cruise director as a ONE because no one is a zero. Captain Salvatore
Messina was also outstanding, I saw him out around the ship more than I had ever
seen a Captain.

After dinner one night, I was talking to Marino, our Matre'd. It turned out he
was on the Destiny at the same time we cruised on it. He stated that he also
preferred the smaller ships. As usual, the food was very good, well prepared and
well presented. The desserts were even better than on my last cruise on
Princess. I had read some reviews saying the portions were too small, all you
have to do is order 2 entrees. I did this on formal night and had a very good
lobster tail and prime rib that was as good as any in our area, and we have very
good restaurants here.

We were booked to go to Costa Maya and Cozumel. However a few weeks before our
cruise, while turning around at Mobile, one of the propellors was damaged. We
had to go to Progreso/Merida instead of Costa Maya for propellor repairs. I wish
Carnival had let us know ahead of time. In Progreso, our shore tour was
cancelled. The tour company failed to notify the ship, so several of us were on
the dock trying to find our tour. I walked back on the ship and found someone
from the tour department. He had a long discussion with the tour company
representative, then helped us find something to do for the day.

The Holiday has only been sailing from Mobile since October, from a brand new
terminal. Embarkation went as smooth as anywhere I have ever sailed from and a
lot better than San Juan, which was a nightmare. Debarkation is now a little
slower than pre 9/11, due to homeland security. This is something we all will
have to understand and live with. The process at Mobile went as smooth as
possible. After leaving the ship, we found our bags, located a porter and got in
line. There were 6 lanes of Customs agents processing everyone. From the time we
walked off the ship until we got to our car was about 30 minutes. Carnival and
Mobile have done a good job of putting all this together, plus everything is
done inside out of the elements.

Would I recommend this cruise? Definitely, for price, itinerary and just plain
fun.